


Pious Tailor

by Jathis, YodaBen2



Category: Beauty and the Beast (2017)
Genre: Budding Love, Catholic Rosary, Communion | Eucharist, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family, Fluff, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Prayer, Religion, Self-Harm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-09
Updated: 2020-01-09
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:55:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22182919
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jathis/pseuds/Jathis, https://archiveofourown.org/users/YodaBen2/pseuds/YodaBen2
Summary: In Villeneuve, it is very common to see Stanley in the church when he is not working in his family’s shop.
Relationships: LeFou & Stanley (Disney: Beauty and the Beast), LeFou/Stanley (Disney: Beauty and the Beast)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 6





	Pious Tailor

**Author's Note:**

  * For [YodaBen2](https://archiveofourown.org/users/YodaBen2/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Soie cerise](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20776829) by [YodaBen2](https://archiveofourown.org/users/YodaBen2/pseuds/YodaBen2). 



It started after his brother Dick and the other eligible boys were sent off to fight in the war. Stanley hadn’t been old enough and his brother would have immediately outed him if he tried to lie about his age to enlist. All he could do was watch as the soldiers marched away with the rest of his family, his three sisters crying into handkerchiefs.

Several days after his brother was gone, Stanley started to go to the village’s church after school. He lit candles and prayed for his brother and the other men of Villeneuve, hoping for all of them to come back home. Sometimes there were others, most of the time he was alone save for Père Robert tending to the building. His prayers were clumsy and awkward in the beginning, mouth unused to talking to a deity, let alone asking for something. 

Over time, Stanley was not only praying for the soldiers to return but also talking to God about his day at school or the goings on in his parents’ shop. Sometimes he asked questions and as he knelt quietly and thought it over and over again, he sometimes found a solution to a problem. He found that this made him feel more at peace about everything and he enjoyed his time in the church, especially when he was alone. It was his own little place to meditate.

***

The rosary came from Père Robert. The beads were wooden, carved to look like small rosebuds. The crucifix on the end was silver. The priest gave it to Stanley after they had come to pray every day for an entire year. He told him that it could prove useful for keeping count and teased the boy that one day he may be naming them his replacement as chaplain.

***

Dick and most of the men who had been sent off came back. A few had injuries and of course there were those who did not come back at all, but it was not nearly as many losses as other villages had suffered. Stanley had been so happy and thankful that he had slipped away during the village’s celebration to sit in the church and thank God for bringing his brother back to him whole and healthy.

Stanley continued to visit the church whenever he could outside of Sunday services. He entered a meditative state there, rolling the beads between his fingers with his eyes closed.

“My brother is going to become a bishop one day!” Dick teased, ruffling his victory rolls out of shape.

“Non! You have to have money for that!” Stanley laughed, shaking his head as he tried to fix his hair. “Besides, I want to stay here with the family.”

***

“Look maman! Saint Sébastien is alive! He’s praying!”

“Shh don’t stare, dear. It’s only the youngest Laurent.”

Père Robert hid a knowing smile behind his hand as he watched the mother and her child walking out. He had noticed some of the looks Stanley got when they were deep in prayer and he found that he couldn’t blame people for staring. The young man’s face became so relaxed and peaceful looking, eyes closed and full lips barely moving as the rosary beads clicked softly in his hands. He resembled one of the statues of the saints.

He had however been forced to gently pull Stanley aside and speak to him about taking the Eucharist during Mass. Stanley usually opened his mouth and had the sacrament placed on his tongue as was tradition. Père Robert however had seen some of the looks people gave Stanley and he was forced to tell him that from now on he would put it in his hand for Stanley to put into his mouth on his own.

Stanley had been a little surprised by this change but nodded in agreement. The chaplain didn’t tell him it was because he was trying to stop others from having impure thoughts during Mass.

***

Prayer and Père Robert helped Stanley come to terms with himself. He had been incredibly distressed when he realized how strongly he felt towards Lefou. This was a great sin according to many and the idea of damnation for what he felt in his heart terrified him. He didn’t know what to do with these strong feelings and so he went to church to try and understand them better.

Père Robert listened to Stanley’s murmured concerns and he went through his own personal bible, marking passages where it spoke of love and how precious and holy the feeling was. He sat with Stanley and spoke with them about these passages, promising Stanley that he had nothing to be ashamed of.

“Love isn’t something you should ever feel guilty about. In a world where hate and ignorance seems to be in abundance, you loving another man adds beauty where there was none before.”

“Do you mean that, Père?”

“Of course. There are many sins in this world that our Father punishes. Being in love is not one of them.” He could see the weight and fear leaving Stanley’s shoulders and he chuckled as the young man hugged him in thanks, patting his back in return.

***

He hadn’t noticed anything wrong when Stanley came to the church several weeks after the lifting of the curse and the marriage of Belle with the prince. The chaplain heard that the young man and Lefou had started to enter a kind of courtship together and he was happy for the both of them. They deserved happiness.

Père Robert realized something was wrong when he stepped into the church the next morning and found that Stanley hadn’t moved since yesterday. He blinked in surprise, noting the way Stanley’s shoulders trembled and he rocked back and forth. He heard a choked sob and he moved faster to get to him. “Stanley?”

The backs of Stanley’s hands were red and raw as if he had been in a fight or scrapped them on something sharp. He was praying with his hands clasped together, fingers interwoven. His fingers were moving, dull nails rubbing the flesh on the backs of his hands.

“Stanley, were you here all night?” he asked. He watched as Stanley’s hands trembled, tears running down his cheeks. He reached down, taking a gentle but firm hold on his wrists and forcing his hands apart. “Stanley,” he said.

He opened his eyes in surprise, blinking up at Père Robert. “Père, I…”

“You’ve hurt your hands, Stanley.”

“I helped try to put an innocent man in the asylum,” Stanley said. “I drew my sword against others in anger. I…”

“Stanley, go home.”

“But..!”

“Some of these are bleeding. Go home, Stanley,” he gently urged him. He brushed away the tears on his face with the back of his fingers. “A lot of people were part of that and it is over now. Ruining your ability to sew by destroying your hands will do nothing but hurt yourself and your family’s shop.”

Stanley could only sniff softly, timidly nodding his head before taking his leave. He finally noticed the throbbing in his hands as he stepped outside and he sighed as he went to wash his hands in the well to avoid scaring his family.

“Stanley?”

He turned slightly, blushing as Lefou approached. “Bonjour…” he whispered.

“Your hands! What happened?” Lefou asked.

“It’s nothing.”

“Here. Sit!” He set to work immediately, using a clean cloth to bind their hands after washing the wounds with water, mindful to ensure Stanley could still use his fingers to work. He brought the bandaged hands up to his lips and he kissed the bandages.

“Lefou…” Stanley whispered, blushing at the gesture.

He just smiled, letting them go. “Take care of yourself, Stanley. I will see you later, oui?”

“Oui,” Stanley agreed with a small nod. He looked down at his hands as Lefou walked away and he found himself softly thanking God for the older man being in his life.


End file.
